


Family

by PeaceLilies



Category: Adrien English - Josh Lanyon
Genre: M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-07-23
Updated: 2014-07-23
Packaged: 2018-02-10 03:39:36
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 7,161
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/2009544
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/PeaceLilies/pseuds/PeaceLilies
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Adrien and Jake deal with an invitation to a family barbecue from Mrs. Riordan.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

I had been working on part of Cloak and Dagger’s inventory, making sure to enter a few new collectibles I had managed to track down a few weeks ago, when there was a knock at the office door. It was early afternoon, sunny and warm on this particular summer day, though you wouldn’t have been able to tell from being in the back office. Natalie was on her lunch break and normally costumers didn’t wander back into the office, so the only person I could think it could be…would be Jake or maybe Angus.

Sure enough, upon peeking over the top of the laptop, I saw Jake standing in my doorway. He was dressed in a short sleeved, tight black shirt that showed off his impressively toned arms and chest, his long, strong legs enclosed in his much loved Levis.

I had just seen him this morning, when we had parted at Cloak and Dagger for work, me at the store and he just next door, working on paperwork for his most recent espionage case. The sight of him made me giddy. I smiled, but it faded when I saw the expression on his handsome face. Forehead slightly wrinkled, those kissable lips drawn in a frown. I blinked.

“Hey…you got a minute…?” he asked. I nodded, saving the information in the spreadsheet and gently pushing the laptop aside.

“Yeah, of course. What’s up?” I asked, offering my hands across the desk. Jake came into the office, closing the door behind him and came up to the desk. His large, warm hands rested over mine, holding them. His palms were damp and my brows furrowed.

Jake and I had been living together for a while now, nearly ten months in fact, five of those spent in the Porter Ranch house. It felt…pretty amazing and living in the big house was working out pretty well for the both of us, especially when we wanted to be together but have our own spaces.

“Jake…what’s wrong…?” I asked, concerned. He took a breath, looking at the far wall in thought.

“My mom called…” he started slowly, turning his tawny eyes to mine. I was in shock and it showed. Jake squeezed my hands, taking a breath.

“What, um, what did she say…?”I asked softly. The last we had heard from Jake’s family…had been during Christmas, nearly six months ago. We knew his family, well, at least his mom, had been trying to reach out to us…actually…just reaching out to Jake. I didn’t know where my standing was with Jake’s old-fashioned, _Catholic_ family. I didn’t really care if I was honest. I could give a rat’s furry butt what the Riordan’s thought of me…but I knew how much his family’s opinion mattered to Jake. He was good at hiding it…but I knew it bothered him that, since coming out, they had shut him out.

Going forty years in the closet and suddenly coming clean to a conservative family was…a difficulty I wasn’t sure I would ever understand. But I wanted to be there for Jake and support him. I’d do whatever he needed me to.

“She invited us over for dinner,” he said softly. I blinked, staring and swallowed.

“She did…?”

Jake nodded, squeezing my hands again.

“Yeah. It’s um…family dinner, a barbeque…my parents and siblings…their spouses and kids will be there,” he said softly. My eyes widened.

“Everyone…?”

Jake nodded again.

“Everyone…”

I tilted my head, squeezing his hands.

“Did she really invite us both or…?” I asked. I had a feeling the invitation had not extended to me. I wasn’t mad about it…but I sort of wish Jake tried not to do that. Saying we were both allowed to tag along, when in fact, I wasn’t welcome at all.

Jake sighed, releasing my hands and rubbing his temples.

“I said I wouldn’t be there unless you could come, too…”

***

I told Natalie that Jake and I were going for a drive and I would be gone for the rest of the day. I didn’t need to explain a thing…my face must have said it all. She told me she had everything under control and the two of us left to take a drive just out of town.

We went by the beach, bought some ice cream and went for a walk.

“You wanna talk about it…?” I asked softly, our bodies brushing gently as we walked slowly.

Jake had been so quiet, concentrated and it made my heart ache in a completely unrelated way to my open heart surgery.

“I don’t know what to talk about,” Jake said honestly, shaking his head. He ate his ice cream, sighing. His broad shoulders sagged a little.

“I have no idea what to expect. It’s my entire family. The only one I’ve talked to is my mother…and even that’s a tough time. I don’t know if she wants us to come or…she’s just being nice and hoping we’ll opt out…” he said.

I felt a flare of anger. Jake didn’t deserve to feel this way…to have to walk on eggshells around his own family. And yet…it was so strange. It made sense. Why Jake had done what he had done, with Kate, with the clubs…with me. It hurt and it made sense. I’d had time to come to terms with it but it was still a shock that his mom had reached out in such a big way.

We knew this would be a thing…it was so odd that it was happening now…maybe because I was hoping it wouldn’t happen at all. We had had ten months of…wonderful, swoon-worthy, electric romance. I mean…it wasn’t perfect, by any means. Jake worked late and sometimes so did I. We argued a little. But every day was a new adventure. We were happy…in love.

We were in love.

That sentence alone was enough to make me want to face all the bigoted, silly, pretty arguments and hate the Riordan’s could throw our way.    
I stopped walking.

“Jake…”

He stopped and turned, looking at me. His face was soft, curious…sad. His hair was a beautiful mix of blond and silver. He had smile lines and crow’s feet…high cheek bones and a strong jaw. Jake practically glowed in the sunlight. He was breath taking. And he was mine.

He came closer, watching me, waiting. I didn’t speak. I leaned up on my toes, in front of all the people walking by the water, eating their ice cream or hot dogs, talking, and kissed him. It was a soft, sweet kiss, full of love. No one batted an eye. The world didn’t end. It was wonderful. He tasted like the moose tracks ice cream he was eating.

“I love you,” I murmured, “whatever you decide to do about your family…I support you one hundred percent…”

Jake stared at me for a long moment…and I wasn’t sure if I shouldn’t have kissed him or if I had said the wrong thing…which I don’t know what that could have been.

‘Listen Jake, I think your family should take a flying leap…’

And then suddenly, strong arms had wrapped around me and warm, firm lips were grinding into mine. I wrapped my arms around Jake, closing my eyes. Very old Hollywood…but wow…what a kiss…

***

I had a chocolate cake in my lap while Jake drove to his parent’s house, a bottle of merlot at my feet.

I had suggested not going…if that might make things easier on Jake while being around his family, but he had vehemently refused. He wanted me to be there. I deserved to be there. It…surprised me and warmed my heart. I didn’t really need any reassurance about Jake loving me, but…it was still nice.

Anyway…the cake had been a disaster at first. I had suggested bringing something other than the wine and so was stuck making cake. I could not cook worth a damn…and well…baking wasn’t any better.

In the end, Natalie and Jake had to come to my rescue before I accidently burnt down the apartment and Cloak and Dagger. They both finished making the cake and I was relegated to the couch until it was done.

So here we were, making our way to the Riordan’s…and I was filled with nervous energy. Jake didn’t seem to be fairing much better.

“Listen…I don’t know how everyone is going to react so just…” Jake started. He was gripping the steering wheel with both hands, eyes straight ahead. I was prepared for anything and everything; from a relatively peaceful, if somewhat awkward evening to a full out fist fight. I was suspecting that I would probably get most of the, disagreeable attitudes, maybe even ignored but…I didn’t really care. I was dating Jake, not his family, and it didn’t matter to me what they thought.

I rested my hand on Jake’s thigh, smiling softly at him.

“It’s okay. Whatever happens happens. I’ll stick to you like glue if you want me to or I can keep a little distance if that’ll be better…whatever you think,” I said. Jake glanced at me, the corner of his mouth tilting up a little.

“I want you close,” he replied, “I’m just…sorry in advance…”

I shook my head and patted his knee.

“Don’t, Jake. We’ll see how this plays out. It’s alright, no matter what,” I said and I meant it.

We pulled up in front of a nondescript, white and blue shingled house in the suburbs of South Pasadena. It smelt like barbeque and a couple of kids ran into the front yard, chasing one another and laughing. Jake’s nieces and nephews no doubt.

Jake took a breath after turning off the car, squaring his shoulders. I unbuckled my seatbelt and he unbuckled his. He turned to me and I leaned in, cupping his cheek and kissing him. He kissed me back.

“Baby,” he murmured softly and my heart fluttered like a bird. I smiled softly, stroking his cheekbone as he reached up to brush his thumb over my bottom lip. This was probably the most intimate we would be able to be before we got back to the Porter Ranch house. That made me a little sad.

“I love you,” Jake said, his hazel eyes seeming to take me all in. I kissed his thumb.

“I love you, too,” I murmured, pausing, smiling reassuringly at him, “ready?”

He kissed me once more, nodded and we got out of the car.

***

Things started out pretty well. Jake was attacked by the kids running through the yard, two pretty blonde girls and cute red-headed boy. His nieces and nephew. Angela, Margaret and Joseph…or as they liked: Angie, Maggie and lil JJ.  

I wasn’t a big fan of kids…but they loved Jake…and it was obvious Jake loved them. He had all three of them in his arms; swinging them around and making them screech and giggle. It…warmed me to watch him with them and I smiled. He set them down and introduced me. I wasn’t sure what to expect when I was introduced. I would have been okay with just being Jake’s _friend_ …but to my sincere surprise…he introduced me as his boyfriend. Not partner, not friend… _boyfriend_. I was floored and proud…and I would have loved nothing more than to jump his bones right there and then.

Six pairs of eyes stared up at me and a chorus of hellos echoed from three small mouths. I smiled and waved, letting the little ones know that it was very nice to meet them and how much I had heard about them. And I had. Jake loved these kids. Angie, the eldest of the trio, piped that there were several children in her class who had two mommies and two daddies and then she turned to JJ, pressing her fingers to his arm and screamed, “YOU’RE IT!” and started running away. Maggie and JJ screeched and laughed, running away from us and chasing after one another again.

I turned to Jake, blinking at him and smiling. He smiled back and jerked his head toward the gate that was open and led to the backyard. The real test then.

Jake placed his hand to the small of my back as we headed into the backyard, adult voices and laughter and the smell of barbeque wafted from just around the corner. The gesture was intimate but subtle. We had to play this carefully. I tried not to place myself on guard right away…but I couldn’t help it. These people started giving us a hard time…I certainly wasn’t going to take it.

The adults were a lot less…warm than the kids had been. There were a few much younger children back here, two toddlers and an infant. Jake’s father was behind the grill, his youngest brother, the one I had seen at the hospital what felt like several lifetimes ago, was standing by him, a beer in hand. Two sisters-in-law, the middle brother, and Mrs. Riordan, were sitting down in plastic lawn chairs around a picnic table with a red and white checkered plastic tablecloth.

“Jake,” Mrs. Riordan said, standing. She had a young face and a slim figure. She had the blonde hair that Jake and his siblings had all inherited, though it was much more silver than blonde now and Jake had her mouth. He was definitely his father’s son though. Mr. Riordan was a big man, much more round than he probably had once been…but Jake had inherited his body type. Tall and broad. In fact, all the Riordan men were.

There was a strange silence after Jake returned the greeting. I smiled a little, heart hammering with nerves.

“You must be, um, Adrien,” Mrs. Riordan said, coming around the table toward us. I nodded, offering a hand to shake.

“Hi. It’s nice to meet you,” I said.

 She took my hand, giving me a little, forced smile. Her handshake was a bare squeeze of my fingers. Like if she touched me more, she’d catch whatever I had. Well then. She said nothing in reply, except to please call her Suzanne.

“I’m Becca,” one of the sister-in-laws said, standing up and coming over, “I’m Tommy’s wife.” She shook my hand, firmer than Suzanne’s, and made eye contact, smiling softly and gave Jake a hug and kiss on the cheek. She was pretty, with big blue eyes and strawberry-blond hair, a trim figure and soft features. The other brother, Tommy, followed after his wife. Danny, the youngest brother, stayed by Mr. Riordan, who hadn’t said a word, he simply continued cooking. They were both especially stiff. Susan, Danny’s wife, gave us a soft, polite, hello.  

I was introduced to the last of the nieces and nephews, twins William and Nicholas and the infant Siobhan.

“Jim,” Suzanne said softly, having moved to the grill and touched Mr. Riordan’s arm. Jim just shook his head, still flipping burgers. Jake looked at his mom and lifted his chin. No skin-off his nose…but I knew he hurt.

“Um…we brought wine…and chocolate cake…” I said softly, smiling and holding both offerings up.

“Here, I can take those. Would you like a glass…? We can open this…we only have beer right now,” Becca said, hands open for the bottle and cake.

“Oh, thanks. No, beer is good. We just didn’t want to come empty handed,” I replied. She smiled, taking the cake and wine.

“Thank you,” she said, “I’ll put the cake with the other desserts. The kids will love this…”

“What kind of beer you drink, Adrien?” Tommy asked, opening a cooler. He had pulled out a Harp, obviously for Jake.

“Whatever you got,” I replied, not wanting to be picky at this point.

“Bass, Harp, Guinness, Bud light, Amstel, Yeungling…?” he rattled off.

“Yeungling is good,” I replied and he nodded, pulling out a bottle for me. He opened them and handed them over to us.  

Things got a little better after that.

I was mostly listening to conversation, since it revolved around sports and Jake’s PI work. I didn’t mind. Jake stayed close, checking up on me with glances and touches. I would smile, return his brief touches. I was okay. This was okay. I wanted Jake to be okay, too.

Tommy and Becca asked about me, my job, hobbies. Talking about Cloak and Dagger and my books and writing seemed like enough fodder for conversation and it was pretty pleasant conversation at that. The kids came around, looking to play and with subtle acquiescence, I let Jake go. Who was I to hinder him? He hadn’t seen his family in months and he needed this more than I did.

I watched Jake with the little ones for some time. He was really good with them, humoring them with a game of Catch and Duck-Duck-Goose. Their laughter and shrill cries of joys filled the backyard.

Danny and Jim steered clear of me, which was fine, for the most part. Suzanne seemed to make an effort to get them to talk to him and briefly chatted with me herself. No progress was made with the Riordan patriarch or his youngest.

Becca and Tommy were the most accepting of the clan. Becca softly explained about their neighbors and kids’ friends whose parents were gay or lesbian and that they didn’t discriminate. They were happy that Jake was happy. They were surprised of course, but thought that I was quite a nice guy and…as long as Jake was happy. It was weird, but, I was content in that I wasn’t getting sucker punched and at least they were trying. Six months ago…we were both sure we’d never hear from Jake’s family again. I think he deserved better and more…a lot more…but this was much better than I had thought.

***

The night wasn’t as great as it had seemed though.

It was late. The kids were stuffed with dessert and, after about forty-five minutes of sugar induced mayhem, they were inside, watching a movie and/or sleeping while us adults were sitting around citronella candles, drinking bourbon and whisky and the merlot Jake and I had brought.

Jake wasn’t drinking much and neither was I. I had decided to be the DD of the night, but I think he was playing it safe. We sat close…but not quite…couple-y…too soon for that.

I had a weird feeling…like this whole night had been too good to be true.

Sure enough…I was right.

Danny had gone to the bathroom and Jake had gone back into the house a moment later to grab a water bottle for me. The shouting started just a few minutes after. I was out of my chair in a flash but Becca caught my arm. Suzanne was trying to slow down Jim and Tommy was first into the house. I was on his heels, breaking away from Becca.

By the time I got into the house, Tommy was trying to separate Danny from Jake, yelling at him to ‘knock it off’ but before he could get a good handle on him, Danny got in a hit right to Jake’s face. I gasped, stunned at the sound of fist hitting bone. Jake grabbed his face, breathing heavily. Blood was seeping through his fingers and onto his mother’s tiled kitchen floor. His brother was bended over holding his hand. Tommy was standing between the two, blocking them. If Danny wanted another hit, he would have to get through Tommy, but by the way he was rocking and holding his hand…he wouldn’t even try.

“Jesus Fucking Christ, Jake! The hell is your face made of?!” Danny yelled. Suzanne was a flutter, coming up next to me and then rushed into the kitchen, trying to attend to both sons at once. Susan was at Danny’s side, trying to look at his hand, and Becca was settling the kids.

I was frozen for a moment, trying to take it all in before I grabbed a roll of paper towel and was at Jake’s side.

“Dish towel,” Jake said, his voice more nasally since he was bleeding all over the place…from his nose. I hoped it wasn’t broken…but it might have been. I dropped the paper towels and looked around, grabbing a dish towel out of Tommy’s hand in the chaos. I pressed it over Jake’s hands and he took it, pressing it to his face.

I knew I would find out what had happened later and I wondered if we might need to go to the ER.

 I had a hand on his back, standing close to his side, protective and watchful. My first coherent thought was…where was Jim?

“Get the hell out of my house,” said Jim’s disembodied voice. He wasn’t shouting…but his deep, authoritative, slightly inebriated voice quieted the noise in the kitchen. Everyone faced him, standing at the opening of the kitchen.

“Jim please,” Suzanne begged softly. Jim stepped passed her, into the kitchen and up to me and Jake. He glared at Jake. I realized then…that I simply didn’t exist.

“Get your homo, faggot ass out of my house right now,” he breathed. Jake stared, toe to toe with his father. He was a few inches taller, much younger. He lowered the dish towel. His lower face was smeared with blood and I could tell there would be bruising. My heart pounded painfully…it made my scar ache. You could cut the tension in the air with a knife.

“Dad…” Tommy tried, reaching for Jim but he shrugged him off forcefully. Danny was crowded in a corner with his wife, a bag of peas over his bruised and battered knuckles.

Jake took a deep breath and let it out slow. He didn’t back down, didn’t look away.

“Yes, _sir_ ,” he replied through gritted teeth. He reached down and took my hand, shouldering past his father and out of the kitchen, pulling me with him. He didn’t look back.

I spared a glance to Tommy and then to Becca, who were standing in the living room off the kitchen, looking stricken, before facing forward and following Jake. His hand was sticky with blood and so was mine.

For a moment, I was filled with rage. I wanted to go back in there and pick a fight myself. Not that I would stand a chance. Who the hell cared who Jake was sleeping with? Who he loved? It didn’t change who he was. But I calmed, slowly. This…wasn’t my fight. It wasn’t even really that. Jake had told a lot of lies, had hid for a long, long time. That kind of stuff didn’t just…go away. There was a lot of resentment there.

We grabbed up our things and made our way back to the front yard. Jake gave me the keys and we got to the car.

“Uncle Jake!” called Angie from behind the glass of the front door. She ran out of the house and Jake went to meet her, his face looking slightly less grizzly. He scooped her up and held her close, murmuring to her softly and she clung to him. Tommy was on the stoop and came over slowly. I watched…my heart breaking.

Tommy and Jake spoke softly and Tommy squeezed Jake’s arm before Jake handed Angie over to her father. He turned and came back to the car, head down and the dish cloth pressed back to his face.

I watched him, unlocking the Honda and we got in, starting it up. We sat with the car running for a few moments to catch our breath.

“Nearest hospital is two miles…I’ll direct you…pretty sure my nose is broken,” Jake said nasally.

“Okay,” I replied, driving down the street, “you okay…?”

“Yeah,” he replied.


	2. Continued

***

We sat in the emergency room for only a few minutes…which surprised me.

“I know a guy,” Jake rumbled as we were lead down a hallway to an empty room.

This guy was an old police buddy’s son and the ER doctor on call.

 Jake had his nose looked at. It actually wasn’t broken, but would be pretty swollen and he’d probably have a black eye. The doctor told him to ice both if need be and take some aspirin or Tylenol for any pain.

We headed home in silence after that.

We got to the Porter Ranch house, greeted by Scout, and rinsed our hands. We gave Scout some pets, fed him and Jake went up to shower.

I stood in the kitchen, running my hand through my hair and rubbing my scar. The evening had been…interesting to say the least. I was surprised but also not at the same time. I felt shaky from all the adrenaline and like I still needed to digest what had happened. The phone rang but I let the answering machine pick up. I poured two tumblers with two fingers or so each of the Wild Turkey we had in the liquor cabinet.

I went upstairs with our drinks, setting them on the bed side table, stripped out of my clothes and threw them on top of Jake’s.

I went into the bathroom, watching Jake standing under the spray, his forehead resting against the wet tile, the water sliding down his back in interesting rivulets. God…he was gorgeous. 

 “Hey,” I said softly, getting into the shower and touching him gently like I might a spooked horse.

“Hey yourself,” he replied quietly. I sidled up closer to him, putting an arm around his waist, kissing his shoulder blade.

“You okay?” I asked softly. I rubbed his back gently, pressing soft kisses along his back and shoulder. Jake turned his head to look at me, blinking the water from his eyes. He looked swollen and tired and it hurt me to see him like that.

“I had a feeling it would happen…” he murmured, “Danny was always a little more…hot headed. And he had been drinking. I knew he was going to confront me and then…well…”

Jake shook his head and laughed sardonically.

“He’s got a mean right hook…”

I pressed closer, trying to hug his body with my own. Pull him into me and keep him safe.

“I’m sorry, Jake…”

He turned, wrapping his arms around me, pressing us flush together. I rested my head against his chest, listening to his heart, rubbing his back, offering as much comfort as I could.

Jake kissed the top of my head and carefully rested his cheek there.

“Don’t be. Thank you for being there…”

A tiny part of me, deep in my heart of hearts…eased in relief. Even after that…Jake still wanted me. He wasn’t ashamed. He wasn’t regretful.

***

We washed up and dried off, heading into bed without clothes. We very rarely slept in pajamas anymore.

We sat in our towels, drinking the Wild Turkey.

“Baby…” he asked softly, looking at the amber liquid and then up at me, “could you get me some ice? Um, for my face?”

I softened and nodded, putting my tumbler down.

“Of course. Yeah. Um…maybe the mixed veggies?” I asked, smiling in hopes that it would lift his spirits. He smiled and chuckled a little.

“Sure. Mixed veggies works fine…”

I fled downstairs; grabbing the frozen bag of mixed vegetables from the freezer and a dishtowel from the counter and then went back up to our room. I found Jake gazing out the bedroom window, sitting with Scout on the floor, petting the dog’s ears gently with his head in Jake’s lap.

I sat down next to him and he turned to me, accepting the bag and the towel with a soft smile and thank you. I smiled back and kissed him very gently.

We sat with our sides pressed together, my turn to pet Scout’s ears as Jake iced his face. We sat in surprisingly companionable silence, just resting close. I put my head on Jake’s shoulder and he rested his cheek on my head.

“I love you,” I murmured, kissing his shoulder.

“I love you,” he replied softly. We rested against one another for a bit longer before moving back to bed, shedding our towels and getting comfortable.

Jake had me all wrapped up and cuddled in the crook of his arm. He liked to cradle me…and I liked it, too. I reached up and gently touched his eye and nose, which were starting to bruise.

“You need any painkillers?” I asked and he shook his head, turning to kiss my fingers.

“I’m alright, Adrien,” he murmured and I nodded.

“Sure…?”

He nodded and kissed me gently, careful of his nose. We cuddled in companionable silence, just breathing each other in.

“Baby…” Jake murmured, his lips nuzzling against my cheek. I looked up, smiling, smoothing my hands into his hair.

“Yes, lover…?” I could feel Jake smile and he nuzzled and kissed me more, his mouth soft but insistent against mine.

“Make love to me…”

He said it so quietly I wasn’t sure if I had heard right, but he was hard against my thigh, pressing close and I was in hot pursuit.   

 Jake pushed his leg between mine, allowing me to rub my cock against his thigh. His hand fisted into the hair at the back of my neck, holding me, kissing me deeply. His tongue brushed against mine, sliding and licking and tasting. He tasted like our toothpaste and…Jake.

I held tightly to him, running my hands down his back, feeling the way his muscles bunched and relaxed and moved under my palms. I caressed a hand over his waist, reaching to squeeze and knead his ass. We made urgent, breathy noises at one another. Hazel eyes met mine, watching me. He reached between us and stroked my cock. I moaned.

I pressed at Jake’s shoulder after one more ass squeeze and a slap, which had him growling, and rolled him onto his back. I straddled his hips, looking down at Jake just as hungrily as he was looking at me. His cock was hard and glistening against his belly and I leaned forward to lick and suck at his head. I loved the noises Jake made when he was turned on. His hands smoothed into my hair, stroking and petting.

“Damn, baby…love that you’re so…limber,” he moaned and I chuckled, breathing against his cock. I kissed his belly, licking along his abs.

“Lube…?” I hummed, sitting up, wiggling against him provocatively. Jake bucked up a little, hands sliding down to my hips, rubbing at them gently and then squeezing my ass. I bit my lower lip, smiling and whimpering happily.

“Got it,” he breathed, reaching under our pillow and pulled out the tube of lube. I took it, leaning over him and pressing our bodies together, sliding our cocks against one another. I kissed him, nipping his lips and he nipped back, squeezing and kneading my ass, slipping his fingers between my cheeks and stroking tenderly.

I hummed, closing my eyes, pressing back against him a little. I handed the lube back to Jake by tapping it against his sternum.

He kissed me, assenting, lubing his fingers and going back to my hole. I loved the way Jake knew me. I loved that he could press his fingers inside me and touch me in all the right ways. I would never know how he did it…but he was so good.

The noises coming out of my mouth were worthy of a really obnoxious porno, but I didn’t care. I loved that I didn’t have to hold back with Jake. He wiggled his fingers against my prostate and I rubbed my dick against his in a steady, rocking rhythm.

“Jesus…so good,” I moaned.

Jake growled, his throat muscles working as he swallowed and it was kind of gorgeous.

“Adrien…come on, baby…”

We took a few more moments of rocking and rubbing before managing to stop. I sat up, taking Jake’s cock and positioning myself perfectly above him. I slicked some more lube onto him before carefully, slowly, sliding Jake into me.   

I had to sit there, filled to bursting with Jake’s cock, my hands trembling against his chest, and breathe, allowing my body to adjust to the intrusion. It was the best feeling. Jake smoothed his hands along my chest, flicking and pinching at my nipples, stroking my belly and cock. He was so attentive…it was the best. I loved him for that…and I wanted him to feel that same kind of attentiveness.

He rubbed his chest, feeling his nipples harden under my hands. I shifted a little, rocking my hips back and forth, trying a circular motion, straining up and then back down, trying to find the best motions for optimal pleasure.

We both moaned when I found the right series of motions. That perfect mixture to stimulate us both. I really loved riding Jake, too. It did incredible things to him that I loved to watch. It didn’t take long for Jake…seeing his eyes glaze and go unfocused, hearing him making those delicious, debauched noises. I felt him come, filling me and spurring me on. Jake had his hands on me, stroking expertly. I felt the tingle and warmth starting to build, spreading from my soles up to my head. God, the release was amazing.

I slumped against Jake, sighing and snuggling against him as he wrapped his arms around me. We stayed like that to calm our breathing before I pulled off of him and rolled to my side.

Jake faced me, reaching out to brush his hands through my hair.

“You’re beautiful,” he murmured, leaning in to kiss me. It was soft and sweet and my toes curled pleasantly. He kissed my scar and pulled me close, holding me protectively against his chest. I didn’t care that his cum covered belly was pressed to mine or that I still had cum leaking out my ass. It was always a pain to clean up hours later…but I felt too good and was too pleasantly tired to care.

Jake let me go as I started to doze. He came back with a wet washcloth and started cleaning me up. It woke me…and the gesture made me ache.

“Jake…”

“Shh,” he replied, smiling up at me. All clean, he dropped the washcloth to the floor and rejoined me. He slid his arms around my waist and rested his cheek on my stomach, closing his eyes.  I rested a hand against Jake’s back, the other stroking his hair. It was long enough to play with, but still relatively close cropped. He had more silver in it now…and I loved the way it looked.

“Are you okay…? After tonight?” I asked softly, gently rubbing behind Jake’s ear. He looked at me, resting his chin on my stomach.

“No…I’m not. But there’s nothing you can do, baby. They are how they are. You can’t change their minds in a day. Maybe not at all. I’m…grateful to have had the chance to see everyone,” he said. He closed his eyes, sighing. I gently rubbed his scalp.

I knew that Jake had had a close relationship with his father and brother…and that their inability to accept Jake for who he was eating him up inside. I didn’t know how to fix that and I wanted to, so badly.

“I’m here for you. Whatever you need…all you need to do is say…” I murmured, cupping his cheek. Those tawny eyes opened and peered at me. Jake smiled his soft, unguarded smile.

“I know. Thank you, baby.”

“We can…always have Becca and Tom and the kids over…your mom, too. We could take out the grill; get the pool kid proofed…” I said.

Jake chuckled, turning his face to kiss a trail up to my lips.

“That’s a very sweet offer…and maybe we will. But…I think we should give them, and me, some time. But…something to keep in mind, definitely…”

I nodded, running both hands into Jake’s hair, scratching gently against his scalp. Jake closed his eyes, lips parting slightly as he sighed. I couldn’t help but smile, my insides feeling like they were turning to mush. He met my eyes and leaned down to kiss me softly. The soft, tender kiss made my eyes sting and I held to him tightly.

“I love you,” he murmured to me, one hand resting in my hair, his lips gently kissing at my eyelids, cheeks, the side of my nose, the corner of my mouth.

“I love you, too,” I murmured back, blinking back tears. It felt like he was comforting me…when I wanted, needed, to comfort him. He needed it more than I did. I gently pushed him onto his back and Jake went pliantly.

I leaned over him, gently running my fingers over his face, careful of his bruises. Big, warm, slightly roughened hands rested against my back and waist, holding me gently, rubbing and stroking in soothing sweeps.

It was moments like this, in the quiet of our bedroom, so far removed from our past and the outside world, that I felt the most overwhelmed by my affections for one James Patrick Riordan. I had never felt this way about anyone. I had never felt anything this deep or fierce.

I gently kissed his face, being especially careful of his nose and eye and cheek. I leaned back, looking at the bruises in the low light from the master bath that we forgot to turn off.

“Oh, Jake…”

He smiled, catching my wrist gently in his big hand, bringing it to his lips to kiss my palm and fingers tenderly.

“I’ve had worse,” he said, looking at me, smiling.

“I know,” I conceded. I leaned in, kissing his top lip, then his bottom lip. I brushed my thumb against his forehead, smoothing against the faint lines there. His face relaxed, going soft and peaceful. His eyes sought mine though and his hands came up to cup my cheeks.

“You’re so pretty,” he sighed, thumbs brushing under my eyes, “everything about you. So, so pretty, Adrien.”

God, I blushed like a schoolboy and…giggled. Jake smile and chuckled, the sound rumbling through both our chests.

“Have you looked in the mirror lately…?” I replied. He shrugged.

“I’m alright…”

I threw my head back and gave a caustic, ‘ha!’

“You, sir, are much more than alright,” I hummed, “you’re a hunk. A catch. A very fine piece of ass.”

Jake’s brows shot up to his hairline.

“So…I’m just a piece of ass…?”

I huffed at him, leaning down to nip playfully at his collar.

“You are so much more than that. You’re…” I paused, staring into those deep, honey colored eyes. What was Jake? I didn’t think there were words. Everything seemed so…inadequate. I shook my head.

“You’re the calm after a storm…you’re what it feels like to come home…you’re safe harbor and the thrill of adventure and the warmth of the sun and a breath of fresh air,” I murmured, “you’re…everything.”

Jake blinked at me. One thumb stroked over my bottom lip and he smiled slowly, smile lines crinkling.

“Baby…”

I pressed my index finger to his lips and hushed him.

***

I woke up the next morning feeling relatively well-rested and coddled. Jake was still wrapped around me, his body comforting and warm against my back. I listened to his breathing, feeling his warm breath against the back of my neck. I squeezed his hand gently, slowly rolling over so I could look at Jake.

He was sleeping peacefully, his face relaxed and almost boyish, despite the bruising, eyelashes laying in soft crescents on his cheekbones. He was breathing deeply, not quite snoring, and his warm breath whuffled against my face. I smiled softly, reaching up to touch his scruffy cheek with tender fingers. I could watch Jake sleeping all day. In all honesty, I could watch Jake do pretty much anything. I ran my finger very carefully over the scar at his hairline from when he’d been hit by a car, and then gently brushed the bullet hole scar on his shoulder. Jake huffed, twitching a little.

I smiled softly, carefully rubbing his chest, soothing him. I hoped that, despite the hardships of dealing with his family, Jake would know that he wasn’t alone. There was me, obviously and my family. The Dauten’s, especially Bill, had taken to Jake immediately. Lisa, too…for all the hard times she gave us both.    

We were building a life together and though I was certain we wouldn’t be without hardships, we had worked hard to get to this point so far and Jake deserved to be happy. It made me, immensely pleased to know that we had this…that we had one another. We worked so well together and living in the house had allowed me to have the space I sometimes craved, while still knowing that Jake was close-by. He was there if I needed him.  He always was. And I was there for him, too.

I kissed his forehead and he grunted, his legs stretching out and rubbing against mine.

“Ow…” he mumbled, slowly blinking his eyes open. I tisked softly, gently stroking back his hair.

“How bad is it?” he asked.

I blinked, studying his face. He had a black eye and some bruises on his cheek but other than that, there was surprisingly little swelling.

“You’re going to make it,” I replied, nodding firmly and his lips twitched up.

“Adrien…”

I kissed Jake’s nose very gently and sighed, resting against my pillow and watching him.

“You have a very impressive black eye and some bruising right there,” I said softly, ghosting a finger against the bruises, but other than that, it’s not too bad.” Jake nodded and sighed softly. He closed his eyes and stretched some more before leaning in to kiss me softly.

“Good morning,” he said. I smiled, curled up against him, and tucked my head under his chin.

“Morning.”

His warm hand rubbed my back and I lifted my face to kiss his jaw, enjoying the feel of his stubble against my skin. We lay together for a short time, talking quietly before Tomkins jumped onto the bed and started meowing at us. Scout was not far behind, padding into the room and sitting on the floor next to my side of the bed. I meowed back at the cat and burrowed against Jake, who chuckled.

“Guess it’s time to get up…”  


End file.
